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Joined: Jul 2012
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Sidelock
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Sidelock
Joined: Jul 2012
Posts: 218 Likes: 137 |
This was going to be my first DGJ article but then they closed shop. So it sat unfinished for the past year or so and I changed direction a bit... In the tapestry of American firearms history, few threads are as colorful and as intertwined with the fabric of innovation as the story of Charles Edward Sneider and his journey with the pinfire system. This article ventures into the heart of 19th-century America, a time of rapid technological advancement and societal change, to explore the pivotal role played by Sneider, a Baltimore-based gun maker of remarkable skill and vision. Through the lens of Sneider's life and legacy, we delve into the symbiotic relationship between the burgeoning United States and the innovative pinfire system, uncovering the profound impact of his work on the course of firearms development. ![[Linked Image from photos.smugmug.com]](https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-F5MTpMk/1/FNRqBfWK3kHsZK8RH6FGRJJjmLLXn6zHBZWqgSMW8/X3/i-F5MTpMk-X3.jpg)
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5 members like this:
John E, Jimmy W, Jtplumb, Lloyd3, Parabola |
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Joined: Dec 2012
Posts: 3,621 Likes: 1034
Sidelock
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Sidelock
Joined: Dec 2012
Posts: 3,621 Likes: 1034 |
Wow! Excellent article. It's a shame that the DGJ folded (for a number of reasons) but even more-so for your sake. First class writing and research here.
Edit to ad: Your Sneider pinfire is beautiful as well. Pinfires look so good to me (and I'm not exactly sure why, but they do). That is likely why I own and use a converted pinfire now myself.
Last edited by Lloyd3; 02/26/24 02:13 PM.
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Joined: Feb 2016
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Sidelock
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Sidelock
Joined: Feb 2016
Posts: 3,541 Likes: 453 |
Really good article Aaron. Lloyd, I think those pin-fires just glow with hand-made artisanal work. There is something about them that spells "quality."
Baluch are not Brahui, Brahui are Baluch
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Joined: Dec 2012
Posts: 3,621 Likes: 1034
Sidelock
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Sidelock
Joined: Dec 2012
Posts: 3,621 Likes: 1034 |
The shapes of those hammers is just incredible. Most modern stuff just doesn't come close. The best looking ones to me were converted to centerfire but still use the early hammer-type. I have even seen some guns where you could use either form of shells (centerfire and pinfire).
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1 member likes this:
John E |
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Joined: Jul 2012
Posts: 218 Likes: 137
Sidelock
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Sidelock
Joined: Jul 2012
Posts: 218 Likes: 137 |
I love the hammer shape on some of Lefaucheux's really early stuff still built on the Pauly breech-loading system. Some were converted to pinfire: ![[Linked Image from photos.smugmug.com]](https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-MXfx9NF/0/CkfgxKXZ9HrKc2cHC8r575RDJGCHjjMnW55RHL5Xr/X2/i-MXfx9NF-X2.jpg) ![[Linked Image from photos.smugmug.com]](https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-ch98Njc/1/DvFBQxvBgNXFC9QjSrSHQkDjknQhWktWfdwv6dLmD/X2/i-ch98Njc-X2.jpg)
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Joined: Jul 2012
Posts: 218 Likes: 137
Sidelock
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Sidelock
Joined: Jul 2012
Posts: 218 Likes: 137 |
The earliest pinfires made as pinfire then start to get a completely different shaped hammer. ![[Linked Image from photos.smugmug.com]](https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-jzmDXxz/1/DgzNm5BSjNzRnW3VQZCnnVbS5mJ7C7VhZvRcC897X/X3/i-jzmDXxz-X3.jpg) ![[Linked Image from photos.smugmug.com]](https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-bBbhMH9/1/DmFxMTs7Lr5v2xxxx9Q8cZ6rz3FWx7mtCVxhzGKDR/X3/i-bBbhMH9-X3.jpg)
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Joined: Dec 2012
Posts: 3,621 Likes: 1034
Sidelock
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Sidelock
Joined: Dec 2012
Posts: 3,621 Likes: 1034 |
![[Linked Image from i.imgur.com]](http://i.imgur.com/fG9batgh.jpg) The fences on a pinfire gun are quite different from centerfire systems (thinner, very differently sculpted), as on this converted 1866 Lang sidelever variant. Your Sneider double looks to be very high-quality for an American gun. Do you know the year of production and...do you use it?
Last edited by Lloyd3; 02/28/24 10:18 AM.
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Joined: Jul 2012
Posts: 218 Likes: 137
Sidelock
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OP
Sidelock
Joined: Jul 2012
Posts: 218 Likes: 137 |
Your Sneider double looks to be very high-quality for an American gun. Do you know the year of production and...do you use it? It is such a nice gun. I think it dates to the early 1870s, after Sneider stopped working with Poultney & Trimble and patented this design, and before he partnered with Duncan Clark. I have shot some of my guns before but not this one.
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